


New Horizons

by tauri



Category: Pocket Monsters: X & Y | Pokemon X & Y Versions
Genre: F/F, HellaFineEliteShipping, Post-Game(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-22
Updated: 2017-09-22
Packaged: 2019-01-04 00:04:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,743
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12157539
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tauri/pseuds/tauri
Summary: Malva doesn't dedicate a lot of thought to those who come to challenge the Elite Four - Karen, as it turns out, is an exception to this.





	New Horizons

**Author's Note:**

> HAPPY BIRTHDAY SANURA I HOPE YOUR DAY IS SUPERGOOD AND FULL OF POKÉMON!!!!! MALVA/KAREN IS A+++ WHAT A GOOD SHIP ♪

 

Malva knew it unlikely that the people of Kalos would ever forget the threat of Team Flare - of _Lysandre_ and _the Ultimate Weapon_ \- but time passed, and talk of such things died down; she welcomed this. What more was there that she could do? To speak on it would come perilously close to _admitting_ it, and that was a possibility that she point-blank refused to allow. Team Flare, as it had been, vanished alongside Lysandre; she wanted to believe that those who survived him had more sense than to openly continue _that_ legacy.

As such, she valued her position as a member of the Elite Four. It had always been a useful title to hold, in terms of both prestige and of _knowledge_ , but there was a kind of glory into throwing herself wholeheartedly into the Pokémon battles presented to her that she wasn't sure she'd felt previously. _Maybe it's a distraction,_ she'd tell herself. If such official duties could hold as adequate distractions, then there seemed to be little harm in that. The point of the Elite Four was to provide an unparalleled challenge, was it not? If there were rumours regarding her performance, a note of fear in the whispers that spoke her name - she could only embrace them. Those who entered the Pokémon league, who rose to the challenge only to retreat, defeated, proved simply that they weren't yet _ready_.

Diantha always had that irritatingly optimistic view of it all. She, too, felt the thrill of battle, but delighted in defeat as much as victory. " _For us to witness defeat is to see something special - victory against us is a significant point in the life of a young trainer. To nurture that power into a magnificent Pokémon trainer... isn't that a wonderful thing, don't you think?_ " (Malva understood, but found it hard to agree. She knew that those she defeated would only make to try again, but there was still _something_ in that moment, on seeing those trainers retreat; _things don't always go your way, do they? That's a valuable lesson too._ _More trainers these days could do with learning that._ )

Like that, Malva watched the trainers that came and went through the Pokémon League. She knew that remembering _faces_ and _names_ was more Diantha's style; to Malva, there was nothing more important than the battle - and the victory. And so, she found herself surprised, on an otherwise unremarkable day, to recognise the figure who had arrived to battle. It was natural for Elite Four members to be aware of their colleagues across the oceans - even if they had never met, there was an awareness of the other members that filled the ranks of the Elite Four. Therefore, Malva recognised Karen immediately, but that didn't quell her surprise. Indeed, it felt strange enough to feel like that in the first place - it wasn't as if her public-facing job hadn't led her to high-ranking members of society across Kalos (and beyond), and she spent her days at the Pokémon League largely fending off smalltalk and conversation from the biggest filmstar of the region, but _Karen_ \- there was something different about her.

There was no room for being starstruck on the battlefield, however, and so Malva fell naturally into her role. It was quickly evident that Karen had more to her strategy than simply relying on type matching to win; between her Pokémon and Malva's own, there was little clear advantage (and that made things more interesting, somehow). Even in the midst of the battle, Malva felt that she couldn't be sure who would win; in terms of strength, they seemed about equal, meaning that strategy and quick decisions were likely to win the day. Malva lost, in the end, but found herself standing in the empty arena for long moments afterward, caught by her own contemplative thoughts. She then took to action; it seemed that Karen had defeated the other members of the Elite Four, and so her current opponent would be--...

The Pokémon League held numerous doors and corridors for use of Elite Four members only; it was also general etiquette that a battle would be witnessed by its participants alone, but Malva couldn't resist the urge to open the door to Diantha's chamber of battle, in the hopes that she hadn't missed the entirety of the match. She was in luck, as it turned out, and neither Karen nor Diantha were likely to notice Malva's presence. As such, Malva was able to observe in a manner that she hadn't been able during her own battle with Karen. That action lacked the immediate adrenaline, but certainly gave her the opportunity to notice the smaller things; the journalist in her yearned for some method to record or film the battle in front of her, but she knew that _that_ would be a terrible breach of tradition. She knew that she wouldn't follow through on such a thought, but... she couldn't silence the part of her that wanted it, just _somewhat_.

Malva felt firmly comfortable in her decision to specialise in Fire-type Pokémon, but there was part of her that admired the spirit of Dark-type Pokémon. Of course, that was Karen's own speciality; any Elite Four member would be aware of that. The nature of the Elite Four tended to attract type-specialised teams to begin with, Malva knew that, but there was something in particular that she found satisfying about watching Karen in the arena, at the top of her game and fully able to turn the tide of battle in her favour. Even against Diantha, even against the power of Mega Evolution, she still held her own in a way that almost seemed effortless. Malva knew that such a display could only truly come from a great amount of effort, but that was one more thing to admire - and both Karen and Diantha seemed to have that talent, making the battle even more exciting to watch. (Malva greatly preferred Diantha in the midst of battle to outside of it; she was far less likely to bring up celebrity gossip or the desire to _go places_ and _do things_ while concentrating fully on her Pokémon tactics.)

Diantha, too, came to a loss at the hands of Karen's team of Pokémon. Following that came her induction into the Kalos Hall of Fame - but that was beyond where Malva knew she could follow. All she could do was to catch up with Diantha as soon as she could afterward, aware that her manner of questioning was somewhat uncharacteristic of their interactions, but feeling that less important in that moment.

"... Did you see where she went, afterward?"

"You're full of questions today, aren't you...! I don't think I've ever seen you this talkative."

"That's not an answer."

"I didn't, unfortunately. If only she knew how enthusiastic you can be, then perhaps she'd have stayed! But I only know that she left the Hall of Fame, and then... whatever came next was her decision, I'm sure. As a visitor to Kalos, I wonder where one would even go, having challenged - and bested! - the Elite Four...? It's unusual to see a member from another region here, like this. I wonder what business she has here? I suppose we'll never know. And it would hardly be any of _our_ business to ask, of course..."

Malva acknowledged that statement, but chose to ignore it. What use was it being top of her field in mass communication if she couldn't track the path of one celebrity within the region? Satisfied that she could gain no further information from Diantha, Malva went to her usual sources in the hopes of finding a lead.

 

\----

 

"... Karen? Is that you?" Malva clasped her hands together, feigning surprise as she approached Karen's table outside the café. "It _is_ you! Fancy meeting you here...!"

Karen looked up, immediately curious on being addressed; she looked mildly confused for a moment, and then her expression settled in recognition. "Ah, we fought the other day, didn't we? _Malva, of the Kalos Elite Four_. What a coincidence! Although I imagine you far more used to the coffee shops and bistros of this city than I am."

Malva laughed gently as she pulled out the chair opposite, seating herself unbidden. In truth, there was little that was coincidental about it; in the time since their battle, Malva had been keeping abreast of Karen's whereabouts, waiting for an _opportunity_. As Diantha had said previously, what else was there for her to do within the region, having beaten the Elite Four...? _Maybe she has friends in the area. Maybe she's here to see family. Who knows?_ The important thing was that, for now, she was in the middle of Lumiose casually enjoying a cup of coffee, and there seemed no better moment to make a move. She'd even sat outside! That made things an awful lot easier. _Coincidence, of course. Of course! Why wouldn't it be._

"I wonder. There's just so much to see...! Although if you were looking for recommendations, I daresay I could draft a quick list for you. Are you here long?"

Karen smiled, a sharp-toothed grin that made Malva's heart skip a beat. "That all depends on what there is here for me to see. Next destination: Alola! But, I'm in no real rush. I simply thought that there was no better way to keep me on my toes than to investigate each region's Elite Four, up close and personal... they have a different system in Alola though, have you heard? I'm quite interested in investigating that. Maybe I can pick up some tips and tricks, while I'm there."

"And Kalos? How have you found it so far?"

"Perfectly delightful...! I'm sure I'm not speaking out of turn to say that I found our battle quite thrilling." She leant forward on caged hands, fixing Malva with a gaze. "If you ever felt like a rematch, strictly off the record, I'd be there, immediately. Just name a time and a place."

"... I'll keep that in mind." Malva let her fingers drift over the unused coaster in front of her, glancing down at it before back up towards Karen. "You're quite an interesting person, Karen. That is to say: I'm interested in you."

"Oh! How forward." Another grin. "I like it."

Malva's first instinct was to frown and say _it's not like that_ , but caught herself in time. In that moment, with Karen still smiling at her, she suddenly wondered; _what am I doing?_ From the moment of battle on, she'd felt that _spark_. That urge to pursue, to meet with Karen, to say - _what_ , exactly? She'd spent the days afterward being aware of her route across the region, had come to this point with the knowledge that she'd be easy to approach - but _why_? She'd been so caught up in that desire, she hadn't really thought to question it. The punch of realisation seemed to come with what she'd just said - that she was _interested_. Karen was _interesting_. Malva had gone along with Lysandre's plan to craft and unleash the Ultimate Weapon almost for the excitement alone - Lysandre had been able to dress up his goals as seeming lofty and noble, but Malva had never held any such pretence. A perfect world would be one with far less people in it - people who were _noisy_ and _boring_ and _irritating_ and _everywhere_ , just _everywhere_ , you couldn't escape them--... and yet here was Karen, here in front of her, and she was _interesting_. That spark of excitement that Malva hadn't been sure how to categorise; she was really _interested_ in something for the first time in what felt like a _long_ time, and the target of that just happened to be--...

"Well. That makes things easier, doesn't it?"

"I'm sure. You ask what I think of Kalos so far?... Maybe I'd say I wasn't expecting to meet someone so cute while I was here."

Malva raised an eyebrow. " _Cute_? That's quite the description. I wonder who you could mean?"

" _Now_ you get coy? You know... I mean, you're a member of the Elite Four, of course you must know, but - I've been into Dark-type Pokémon for as long as I can remember. They're so, like... they're tough, and they're cool, and they just have such an irresistible image. Don't you think? I get that feeling from you, too. Sat here like this, I'd never suspect otherwise that you were the sort of person who could give me the kind of battle we experienced before, and yet - here we are. Fire's the right type for you, I think. The image of fire... hot, burning, _uncontrollable_ \- and yet you're so composed! Maybe you're like a firework, just ready to go off. Or a powder keg, ready to blow. Keeping it wrapped up, deep inside, just _waiting_ for the next battle. ...I think that's pretty cute, anyway. Maybe I have strange ideas of what 'cute' means."

There came the disarming sense that Karen had watched her, briefly, and come to an entirely too correct conclusion; wishing to keep up _some_ sense of secrecy, Malva brushed that comment aside. "I'm not sure that I understand, but I'll take it as a compliment. I would be interested in battling you again, though - off the record, as you say."

"Nothing to do with the League or the Elite Four or any of those things - just you and me, one-on-one. Right? It'll be exciting." She leant back against her chair. "I'm excited just thinking about it...!"

Malva offered out her phone. "Then, we should swap numbers. Don't you think?"

"Of course." Karen brought her own phone out, readying it for the data transfer. "Then it doesn't matter where in the world we are, does it? I could be halfway across Sinnoh, ' _hey Malva, come battle--!_ '"

"That's slightly unreasonable."

"It'd be fun though, wouldn't it?"

The thought of the lengthy plane journey was far from what Malva knew she'd classify as being _fun_ , but also knew that that wasn't the point. The _point_ was the spontaneity, the intrigue, the unpredictability - perhaps they'd never meet in Sinnoh to battle, but perhaps they _could_ , and that was the important thing.

Having retrieved Malva's number, Karen stood up from the table. "I'd love to stay here all day, but I'm afraid I can't really be so free and easy with my time _all_ the time - that's the thing with travel, it's so hard to cram everything in! Appointments to keep, people to see... but we'll battle again before I leave. I'm sure of it. I'll make sure of it! I won't leave until I've seen you again." She leant down to where Malva sat, pressing a kiss against her cheek. "That's a promise."

"--... R-right, yes. A promise."

"Hm! You get flustered easily? I'd never have thought!"

Internally, Malva knew that she also wouldn't have thought so, which made her reaction to Karen's action all the more infuriating. "Well, anybody would be embarrassed, doing embarrassing things in broad daylight like that..."

"Now, that _is_ cute. People in Kalos kiss each other all the time, don't they? Greetings and goodbyes and whatever else. Or did I get that wrong?"

"... I think that largely depends on who you're speaking to."

"And I'm speaking to you, so...? Maybe I'll get a kiss from you, next time...! As a greeting, of course."

"I wonder if it's really such a good idea to buy into national stereotypes..."

"It's all part of the atmosphere, isn't it?" Karen ran one finger along Malva's jawline, before pressing it to her lips. "It's a promise, okay? Don't forget." (And with that, she vanished into the Lumiose crowds of the street beyond.)

Malva remained at the table, unable to articulate to herself why it was that she felt so _breathless_ from that one encounter. She still wasn't sure that she understood herself - it was one thing to say that Karen was interesting, but... _this_? Malva didn't know what _this_ was. ...It certainly seemed to be _something_ , though, and as such, felt like it might just be a thing that was worth pursing.

(She'd bring her own fingers to her lips, breath hitching at the memory. _What was that?!_ She had no answer, but hoped that Karen could perhaps provide one on their next meeting - and she wouldn't leave Kalos before that meeting, and so Malva was content to wait, spinning out her own confusion in the meantime. _That, too, is interesting. ...Just a little._ )

 


End file.
